Red and Blondie: The Backstory
by ArcherGirl02
Summary: Ever wonder why Theresa and Peeta HATED each other in Betrothed to the Baker? Well, this, of course, explains it! Possible Slaterlark if you squint. This is dedicated to my relentless readers who I love SO SO VERY MUCH! (: ArcherGirl02


Summary: She didn't know what it was about Peeta Mellark. She didn't understand why he unnerved her so much. He didn't understand why she didn't like him. Theresa Slater could NOT stand Peeta Mellark, and soon enough, He couldn't stand her, either.

Kindergarten

From the moment Theresa Slater' s cold blue eyes laid on Peeta Mellark' s bubbly ones, she knew that she wouldn't like him. They might of been in Kindergarten, and they were only children, but when Theresa decided on something, it was final. "Hi, I'm Peeta! What's your name?" He asked her nicely when she plopped down in the seat next to him, since her name was written neatly on a name tag next to his. "I'm Theresa-Marie," She stated, scrunching up her face as she politely shook his hand. "You have a really pretty name, Theresa-Marie" Peeta exclaimed, a huge, lopsided grin complete with dimples traced his chubby, 5 year old face. Theresa propped her head up on her palm. Yup. She definitely wasn't gonna like this guy.I,

First Grade

"Hello, Peeta." Theresa greeted, her voice emotionless when the little blonde boy jogged up to her on the first day of First Grade. She clutched her brother's hand when Patrick said, "Oh, you're the baker' s kid. Weren't you in Theresa's class last year?" Peeta nodded exuberantly, his blonde waves bobbing up and down. Unlike Theresa, who was fitted with a head of strawberry curls, Peeta's hair was more controlled, while Theresa's head looked as if she was on fire. Patrick, who was only in fourth grade, and being a ten year old, it was "un-cool" to be seen holding his sister's hand, left Theresa with Peeta. Peeta grinned at her with friendly expression and Theresa tried to ignore the little boy. When they were escorted to their classrooms, Theresa found that yet again was she seated next to Peeta. He complemented her on her new dress, which was white with pink roses on the right shoulder, saying that she "looked like a princess". She grimaced inwardly at that. She definitely WASN'T a princess, by the slightest of standards. This year was going to be horrid.

Second Grade

Theresa was lucky enough to be seated next to Katniss Everdeen this year. Peeta had been seated across the classroom. Katniss was easy to talk to, and the little girls found themselves giggling at the thought of Theresa's older brother Patrick tripping up the steps earlier that day. Peeta was relentless. He seemed to only keep trying for the favors of Theresa. All he wanted was to to be her friend. At some point, Katniss had intervened in Theresa near-argument with Peeta to tell them that fighting was never the alternative. Peeta had just blushed fiercely and didn't talk to Theresa for a long time.

Third Grade

Theresa began noticing some of the boys this year. No longer was Peeta the chubby, short boy who offered her cookies, he was now a nice guy who seemed to be the ever-gentleman. It unnerved her. What was he playing at? Why didn't he get the point that she didn't like him? One day, when Theresa had accidentally dropped her books, her made the point of helping her. "Theresa, maybe we could possibly be friends? I really don't like how we are acting around each other." Theresa settled with glaring one of her death glares at him. He got the idea and walked off to some of his friends.

Fourth Grade

When the Music teacher paired up students to duets, Theresa was put with no other than Peeta Mellark, who hasn't had the gits to look at her for most of the year. "Now, you will be singing anything you and your partner agree on, children! Have fun!" Ms. Gold said in her sing song voice. Theresa sighed as Peeta asked, "Can you sing? Because when I do, I sound like a dying goat." That got her to snort, but she shrugged, "I don't know. I never sing in front of people," That was probably the nicest she had been to Peeta for a while. "Then sing, silly." He said, all ears. So she did, her sweet voice filling the room, echoing the words of a song called Over The Rainbow, and Peeta listened, shocked that such a bitter girl could have such a pretty voice. Soon after she was done, another voice filled the room, as sweet and sound as Theresa's had been, and Peeta recognized that two unlikely girls, Theresa and Katniss, had voices that were unlike any others he had heard. That year, Theresa had proven that she was not as cold as she she made herself out to be.

Fifth Grade

Theresa and Peeta completely ignored each other. It was a sweet silence in the feud that was about to unfold. Theresa's hair had calmed down a bit, turning a browner color, and her eyes a bit more gray. Peeta's eyes had opened up to art, and so had Theresa's. Whenever they could, they would Doodle on the margins of the their note pads, always increasing skill each time. But neither of them spoke a word to each other that year. And it was all good.

Sixth Grade

This was the year Theresa decided to chop off her hair. Not all of it, but into a haircut that was shaggy enough to make it unreal for a boy to wear but to too short for any girly girl. Theresa wasn't a girly girl. You could tell by the way she wore her brother's t shirts with pride and how her glares could almost make you drop dead. This was the year Theresa noticed that Peeta Mellark was that slightest bit handsome. But not her type. She like daring, edgy guys. Not sweet, blonde bakers. So when Peeta asked her to the Harvest Festival, she said that he wasn't what she liked in guys, but he went on, asking a girl named Annabelle instead grudgingly. She went with a boy named Thom, who was three years older than her, and one of her brother's closest friends. They had a fun time, but she couldn't help but wonder why Peeta Mellark made her so angry inside. She couldn't explain it. She wasn't much of a dancer, but when Thin pulled her out for a intricate polka, she tried not to act like she didn't want to be there. But when the couples switched partners, she found herself dancing with the boy she rejected. "Peeta." She said, and he smirked a half smile. "Red." He said, and she tried hard not to push him over. "You're nimble on your feet. Anna couldn't keep up with the music, but you seem ahead. Do you practice?" He said, making easy conversation. "No, but when I was young, I was diagnosed with something called Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. All it means is that I'm more energetic than most kids...and I have a hard time focusing. What about you? I know YOU'RE messed up in the brain," She explained, joking as she was spinned around. "Haha, very funny, Theresa. Not anything that I know of. And I have to say, you do look ravishing today," Peeta said And Theresa rolled her eyes. She had been wearing a blue denim dress that must have been her mother's with a pair of the oldest sneakers he'd ever seen. "Thank you, Peeta." She stated, having enough manners to realise he wasn't joking around. Soon enough, she was paired with Thom again, and she wondered if Peeta Mellark wasn't as intolerable as she thought he was.

Seventh Grade

By this time, Theresa had started to grow into her womanly stature and was starting to leave the awkward stage of puberty. But soon, she became ill, and had started missing days. Peeta, even through his daze of admiring Katniss Everdeen, the girl he had liked since kindergarten, noticed that Theresa's illness was effecting her character. When he asked Mr. Slater what was wrong when he stopped by the woodwork shop in the Square, he explained it had something to do with her disorder, and she needed to be drugged constantly since the chance of her going under cardiac arrest was high.

Peeta was shocked, and a bit pitiful, so he stopped by Annabelle' s, who had accompanied him to the festival the last year, parent's shop to pick up a small bouquet of Lilies of the Valleys for her. When he confronted her brother at the store front, Patrick smiled knowingly and told him that she was under a ton of morphling, so she probably was loopy, or sleeping. Peeta didn't mind. Even if Theresa wasn't going to accept him as a friend, he was still worried about her. Patrick lead him to the small, fern green room with the large bed that held the frail form of the strong girl he once knew, Peeta's frown deepened. "Hey there, Red." He greeted nicely. She looked at him with large, cloudy looking blue eyes, and looked at the bouquet. Then she did something unthinkable. She smiled and giggled, saying, "Are those for me?" He nodded, grinning, thinking of how the normal Theresa would have reacted. She would have probably pushed him and yell about not asking for pity. "Yeah, they're for you." He answered and inched towards her. She looked sickly, and much thinner than usual. She wore a gray cotton nightgown, accompanied by the largest smile he'd seen. She was so childlike, it was unreal. "Thank you, Peeta. I love them!" She squealed, and she looked at him with sleepy eyes. "I'm really tired. Maybe we can talk at school, when I'm all better. Can we?" She yawned, and he thought, Yup. Loopy is the best word for it.

But a week passed, and he was beginning to think she wasn't going to recover, when she came into first period looking healthy. She didn't say a word. She just came up his desk, pulled him out of his seat and hugged him. "Thank you. You're the only one who came to see me. How did you know that the Lily of the Valley was my favorite?" She whispered as Ryan, he cousin, and best friend, stared at the open-mouthed. "I guessed. You're welcome, Red." He said, startled. She gave him a smile and went back her seat without another word.

Eighth Grade

Things between Theresa and Peeta fell back into place again after Theresa's medical breakdown. Her father had to give up some the profit he made through his career of a woodsman to get her vaccine that cured her illness from the Capitol. Not many people saw her in that time. Only her family and Mrs. Everdeen, who was keeping an eye on her. The only classmate other than Ryan that came to see her was Peeta, and he brought her flowers. Weird. But that small act of kindness and the warm hug she gave him sort of disappeared the day Theresa was accused of making Peeta break up with a girl name Charlotte Yearn, who was bent on the idea that Theresa and Peeta had something going on. At first, she laughed. It was unreal. Had this girl gone loony? The baker' s kind son and the sick carpenter's daughter? UNTHINKABLE. Yet every one believed it. It only resulted in a full out screaming fight between Peeta and Theresa during period seven in the gymnasium. It was like that for weeks, until Charlotte used her idiotic l, blonde brain to figure out that Peeta just didn't like her. Or apparently Theresa. Whatever trace of friendship had been there between the two fourteen year olds was gone. A war was beginning. And no one knew who was going to win.

Ninth Grade

The year consisted of quarrels, fights, arguments, and death stares coming from Theresa Slattery and Peeta Mellark. Nothing had changed. They hated each other, and that was final. Charlotte, of course, felt terrible, and tried to apologize to THERESA, but instead got a bloody nose induce by an annoyed punch in the face. A month's worth of detention did not mean much to Theresa, especially when she wasn't in a good mood. Heck, she was never in a good mood anymore. Since the illness she had taken on in seventh grade, Theresa found herself weaker and more vulnerable than usual. So when Peeta Mellark brought that up in one of their meaningless arguments, she nearly tore his head off. Instead, she rushed from the room and into the teacher's rest room, when she locked herself in and cried for nearly an hour.

Theresa had always known she had hated Peeta Mellark. She just didn't know how should could dislike him this much.

The End

A/N: Good backstory? Bad Backstory? Let me know! What do you think? Is that enough of an answer for you guys to understand? I love you all! ArcherGirl02

Ps, I loved writing this! Peeta and Theresa are just so much to fun to write about together! Plus, I needed to have a couple of sweet moments in there because Theresa's not all monster, even if half of her is. (;


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